Boy sold in Compostela up for adoption

The one-year-old boy who was turned over to social workers three months ago  after he was  sold to a couple in Compostela town for P500 will be eligble for adoption, said a social welfare officer.

With both parents considered “unfit” to raise the child, a relative of the boy’s mother from Argao town initially expressed interest to take permanent custody.

But he  didn’t show up again.

“We gave him  one week to coordinate with us. It’s been over the alloted time and no call or visit from him,” said  Nads Noel  of the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD).

The paperwork will take time, however,  since the boy was only baptized in Naga City but not recorded in the civil register.

A  birth certificate is another requirement.

Once a Certificate of Legally Available for Adoption (CLAA) is secured from the DSWD,  he is ready for adoption matching, said  Noel of Reception and Study Center for Children (RSCC).

She said the boy will probably qualify for inter-country adoption since most local adoptive parents tend to choose children below two years old.

The boy turned two  years old last May 14 at the RSCC where social workers pitched in for his birthday celebration.

His parents were earlier disqualified for custody after an assessment of their parental capability.

The boy was turned over on April 17 to DSWD by a couple to whom the boy was sold for P500 by a man who  claimed to be the father.

It turned out the man took the boy without the consent of his parents, who were  his acquaintances.He was arrested, detained at the Compostela Police Station and is set for transfer to the Cebu provincial jail,  Noel said.

The mother had no job or clear place to live.  Her partner did not show interest in taking care of the boy. /Jessa J. Agua, Correspondent